The Huntington Garden in California is Unbelievable

The Huntington is an amazing garden and art museum that is simply spectacular. The Desert Garden was huge and incredible. Photos by Doug Oster Trib Total Media

For days friends have been talking about The Huntington. This massive public garden and art museum is breathtaking.

With temperatures reaching triple digits, water in hand, I headed for the Desert Garden on the recommendation of self described Gardennerd Christy Wilhelmi. “It’s like an alien world,” she said with a smile.

These barrel cactus are massed together and look like they are from another world.

She was right, it’s hard to imagine how beautiful these desert plants can be. Slowly walking the paved trail reveals a new surprise at each turn. Slowly was the keyword as the heat was stifling. As soon as I threw my water bottle away, I saw a water fountain. Fellow garden writer Beth Botts pulled an emergency water bottle out of her backpack and shared it with me. She’s a talented writer and plant expert. She became my trusted companion to explore the garden, keep hydrated and navigate the trails. As I’m incapable of reading a map, Beth would point the way in the direction of everything we wanted to see.

There’s always something cool about a yucca plant’s texture.

We sat in the shade wherever we could as we worked our way through the Desert Garden. When these plants bloom, the colors are intense.

Later in the day, I was drawn back to the Desert Garden. The light was lower along with the temperatures. The 10 acres are filled with 2000 plants and the garden has been here 100 years.

But there’s certainly more to The Huntington than the Desert Garden. I followed Beth all over, discovering treasures with each step. The Huntington’s art gallery provided a respite from the heat and rejuvenated us with its beauty. The celebrated Blue Boy was really wonderful to see, but the rest of the museum is packed with intriguing art.

Blue Boy is just one of the masterpieces in the museum.

There’s not enough good things I can say about this place, and not enough space to post all the pictures. I could have spent days exploring The Huntington and hope to see it again. Maybe next time I’ll visit when things cool down a bit. Here are a few more shots of the gardens.

I loved the statuary placed all over the grounds here.

Check out this cool grafted rose. Two colors on one plant.

Beth and I sat in the shade and enjoyed watching the Koi at the Fish Pond.